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About My Face Is Black Is True

“My face is black is true but its not my fault but I love my name and my honest dealing with my fellow man.” –Callie House (1899)In this groundbreaking book, acclaimed historian Dr. Mary Frances Berry resurrects the remarkable story of ex-slave Callie House (1861-1928) who, seventy years before the civil-rights movement, headed a demand for ex-slave reparations. A widowed Nashville washerwoman and mother of five, House went on to fight for African American pensions based on those offered to Union soldiers, brilliantly targeting $68 million in taxes on seized rebel cotton and demanding it as repayment for centuries of unpaid labor. Here is the fascinating story of a forgotten civil rights crusader: a woman who emerges as a courageous pioneering activist, a forerunner of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr.

About My Face Is Black Is True

“My face is black is true but its not my fault but I love my name and my honest dealing with my fellow man.” –Callie House (1899)In this groundbreaking book, acclaimed historian Dr. Mary Frances Berry resurrects the remarkable story of ex-slave Callie House (1861-1928) who, seventy years before the civil-rights movement, headed a demand for ex-slave reparations. A widowed Nashville washerwoman and mother of five, House went on to fight for African American pensions based on those offered to Union soldiers, brilliantly targeting $68 million in taxes on seized rebel cotton and demanding it as repayment for centuries of unpaid labor. Here is the fascinating story of a forgotten civil rights crusader: a woman who emerges as a courageous pioneering activist, a forerunner of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr.

From the Trade Paperback edition.

Awards

New York Public Library Books for the Teen AgeSUBMITTED

Praise

“Fascinating. . . . Berry has brought this leader from obscurity and given her cause the recognition it deserves. No one can fully understand the history of the reparations movement without reading this book.”–The Washington Post Book World

“Remarkable. . . . Berry has done a brilliant job of documenting the life of Callie House. . . . This is an incredible story and one that truly deserves to be more than mere footnote in our history texts. . . . Authentic and essential.” –Tucson Citizen

About Mary Frances Berry

Mary Frances Berry received bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Howard University, a doctorate in history from the University of Michigan, and a Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School. Dr. Berry is the Geraldine R. Segal Professor of… More about Mary Frances Berry

About Mary Frances Berry

Mary Frances Berry received bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Howard University, a doctorate in history from the University of Michigan, and a Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School. Dr. Berry is the Geraldine R. Segal Professor of… More about Mary Frances Berry